(HENDERSON) -- A maker of solar modules plans to locate a new plant in Vance County.  Semprius will create 256 jobs over five years and invest $89.7 million in the project.

Gov. Bev Perdue joined leaders of Semprius, Inc. on Tuesday for the announcement in Henderson.  Semprius is eligible for a $600,000 state grant and if Semprius meets job creation and investment the company could receive $3 million in incentives from another grant.

“We are excited to partner with the state of North Carolina and Vance County in bringing new jobs to the region, and we appreciate the commitment to both the success of our company and the advancement of solar power generation,” said Joe Carr, Semprius president and CEO. “As the adoption of clean energy continues to gain momentum in the U.S. and abroad, and demand for solar systems grows, the industry will look to innovators like Semprius and pioneer regions like North Carolina for viable solutions.”

Semprius has a patented technology for producing cutting edge solar modules that can concentrate the sun’s energy more than 1,100 times onto the world’s smallest solar cells. The company will sell modules produced in the Henderson facility to global system integrators and project developers, who in turn sell complete solar systems to end users such as utility companies.

“We welcome them to North Carolina: the smart grid capital of the world,” said Gov. Perdue.